This present invention relates to a portable sectional pole and its means of connection and, more particularly, to a portable sectional pole having one or more holding members adapted to support containers for administering substances into a user's body and for collecting substances eliminated from a user's body. The holding members are integral to the sectional pole and may be removable or concealable thereby further facilitating the portability of the pole. In addition, the sectional pole is self-supporting in that it is adapted to support itself or use any suitable, yet commonplace, external structure for support thereby enhancing its versatility.
Cost of medical has risen over the years and continues to rise. More and more emphasis is being placed on performing necessary treatment in a clinical setting or a hospital and then only releasing a patient after a patient's condition has reasonably stabilized. Post-hospitalization care in many cases is now performed by the patient or by third parties; be they family, friends, or paid professionals. Such post-hospitalization and post-treatment care may require intravenous feeding, intravenous administration of medications, and other forms of catheterization for introduction of substances into one's body (infusion therapy) or for the elimination of substances from one's body; such as, but not limited to, eliminations involved in perineal dialysis treatment.
Depending on the regimen involved, such administration can adversely affect one's lifestyle and dramatically inhibit one's quality of life. To administer to these needs, generally a device must be capable of holding and supporting a bag or suitable container. This bag or container either contains the substance to be administered to the user or is an empty receptacle for receiving expelled substances from the user. Many such devices currently exist in a variety of forms for use either the clinical setting or at home or other non-clinical setting. Some such devices are found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,511,157 issued to Wilt on Apr. 16, 1985; in U.S. Pat. No. 4,541,596 issued to Price on Sept. 17, 1985; in U.S. Pat. No. 4,744,536 issued to Bancalari on May 17, 1988; in U.S. Pat. No. 5,009,442 issued to Schneider on Apr. 23, 1991; in U.S. Pat. No. 5,135,191 issued to Schmuhl on Aug. 4, 1992; in U.S. Pat. No. 5,188,323 issued to David on Feb. 23, 1993; in U.S. Pat. No. 5,337,992 issued to Pryor on Aug. 16, 1994; and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,374,074 issued to Smith on Dec. 20, 1994. All these devices, alone or in combination, are well-suited for their intended purpose. Some, however, are extremely complex and difficult to use. Some require an additional component which itself is complex, such as a wheelchair or gurney for example, for proper use. Some are portable, some are collapsible, some are relatively easy to use. None, however, incorporates all the features necessary for relatively unobtrusive use and ease of use outside a clinical setting while simultaneously being portable, flexible, and multi-faceted as is the present invention.
Accordingly, several objects and advantages of my invention are to:
a. provide unique but simple and sturdy connectors to connect together sections of sectional poles to create poles of varying sizes; PA1 b. provide a completely portable light-weight sectional pole which is easy to conceal, easy to transport, easy to assemble, and easy to use anywhere; PA1 c. provide holding members on a portable pole which are capable of supporting a variety of containers for use and are concealable within or detachable from the portable pole when the portable pole is broken down; PA1 d. provide for a variety of settings and locations on a support pole for holding containers necessary for tending to a user's health care needs; PA1 e. provide a support pole which can adapt to and be supported by external objects having irregular configurations; PA1 f. provide a support pole which, when attached to an external object, protects and does not damage the external object; and PA1 g. provide an inexpensive, fully functional, versatile, and relatively unobtrusive support pole for a user to administer to that user's health care needs in virtually any setting.
The foregoing has outlined some of the more pertinent objects of the present invention. These objects should be construed to be merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications of the intended invention. Many other beneficial results can be attained by applying the disclosed invention in a different manner or by modifying the invention within the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other objects and a fuller understanding of the invention may be had by referring to the summary of the invention and the detailed description of the preferred embodiment in addition to the scope of the invention defined by the claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.